10/21/2019

It's been such a stormy weekend!  I hope the weather didn't dampen your spirits or your time with family and friends.  We've entered that time of year when we take a close look at the weather around 10:30am to make sure that it's not too rainy for students to play outside.  We really want kids to have as much time outside as possible - kids need their exercise and space to play and relax together.  To be honest, we let kiddos tolerate drizzle.  But, when it's too wet we call for inside recess.  We had a couple of those this week.  On inside recess days we give students three options: undercover area for outside play including basketball, hula hoops and tether ball; library for quiet reading; and room P3 for an engaging, short video.

I want to take a moment and thank Deputy Superintendent Dr. Kregg Cuellar for spending his morning at FPE on Friday.  Dr. Cuellar loves FPE - staff, students, and parents - and in his role enjoys staying connected to schools.  He hosted Morning Mug on Friday for an hour.  Come back anytime, Dr. Cuellar!

At Morning Mug, Dr. Cuellar made a big announcement: FOFPE has approved funds for the installation of five new cameras.  This safety upgrade is huge for our campus safety.  Thank you to our Safety Committee Parent Leads Mara, Heidi, and Cheri for giving time to plan and advocate for this safety upgrade.  

I want to thank everyone who was able to join me for the Fall State of the School Address.  We had a great turnout!  If you missed my presentation, please feel free to review the slide deck.  And,  take a look at FPE Mission, Vision, and Goals for 2019-2020. 

We had a lot of excited students this past week as the FOFPE sponsored our annual Scholastic Book Fair.  Thanks so Stephanie and her team of volunteers for giving our community access to great titles!  Book fair proceeds go towards our upcoming author visits from Trudy Ludwig and Eric Kimmel.  Thank you for your support!! 

This month is Dyslexia Awareness Month.  Please take a moment and read about a great opportunity offered on 11/07/19 that will increase your knowledge of dyslexia's impact on students, below. 

Lice has made it's way to FPE recently.  Please take a moment and make sure you know how we address head pets (lice) so that you can keep our school community itch free: 
https://www.multnomahesd.org/headliceinformation.html 

In honor of Pronoun Day last week, I have updated to email signature to include my preferred pronouns: she/hers.  It's important to me that all people who enter Forest Park Elementary know they are in an inclusive environment.  

There's lots more to know about life in the land of Forest Park; read on below.

Warmly,
Lisa Newlyn, Principal
she/her

As the temperature drops with winter’s approach, the need for warm clothing rises. In Portland Public Schools, families that need help acquiring clothes and other essentials can turn to a long-established program.

A meal that started as a cultural celebration at one of Portland Public Schools’ dual language immersion schools has now gained national recognition as one of the best meals served at a K-12 school in the United States.

The Franklin High School boys soccer team made history Saturday, winning a state championship for the first time in program history, with a 2-1 overtime win over Summit in the Class 6A final at Hillsboro Stadium.

With parent-teacher conferences just around the corner, it is important to know that PPS offers free interpretation services and other resources for our linguistically diverse families. If you need an interpreter for the conferences, which will be held Nov. 25-26, let your school know.